1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a connector for connecting an FTC (Flexible Flat Cable) or FPC (Flexible Printed Circuits) to a substrate.
2. Description of Related Art
As a technique of this kind, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2006-134708 (hereinafter referred to as “Patent Document 1”) discloses a connector for a flexible substrate, into/from which an FPC can be inserted/removed and which is connected to a printed wiring board. As shown in FIG. 20 of this application, the connector includes a number of signal contacts 80, an earth contact 81a, an earth contact 81b, a housing 82, and an open/close cover 84. The signal contacts 80 are arranged in the right-left direction. The earth contact 81a is disposed on the left side of the direction in which the signal contacts 80 are arranged. The earth contact 81b is disposed on the right side of the arrangement direction. The housing 82 has incorporated therein the signal contacts 80, the earth contact 81a, and the earth contact 81b. The open/close cover 84 is axially supported by the housing 82 and rotates so as to open/close an opening 83. As shown in FIGS. 20 and 21 of this application, an FPC 85 includes a flexible substrate 86, a shield member 87, a protective plate 88, and an earth connection piece 89. The flexible substrate 86 includes a plurality of signal lines. The protective plate 88 is adapted to increase the rigidity at ends of the FPC 85. When the open/close cover 84 is positioned at an unlock position to open the opening 83, the FPC 85 can be inserted into the housing 82. Meanwhile, when the FPC 85 is inserted into the housing 82 and the open/close cover 84 is positioned at a lock position to close the opening 83, the signal contacts 80 are connected to the signal lines of the FPC 85. At this time, the earth contacts 81a and 81b are in contact with the earth connection piece 89.